I don’t know if those little tires can handle muddy, unpaved country roads like a tractor can.
You can mount ATV wheels on them.
Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
51–60 of 651 posts
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#52The 25-year import rule here, which bans Americans from importing vehicles from other countries unless they're 25+ years old, is just awful for those of us who would be interested in driving small, efficient foreign cars. It would be great to live completely car-free, but absent major changes to how we plan our cities, it's just a sad reality that cars are a necessary ingredient to life in the vast majority of Americ…
That rule ain't changing unfortunately. Regulatory capture is STRONG with automotive and the US sees it as a matter of national security (car makers would be pivoted to other ares in times of war).
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#53One of the most highly upvoted Reddit posts on /r/fuckcars mocks large pickups compared to the utility of a kei truck. https://reddit.com/r/fuckcars/comments/sdrgv3/japanese_truck... A kei truck has about 90% the bed length of a pickup while being a lot more nimble. The lower bed is more ergonomic to load and unload too.
Missing the point. Many people buying inefficient oversized pickup trucks don't care that there's smaller and more efficient options out there, but they do it for the status simbol and ego lifting, not to be utilitarian and efficient.
I see these monster pick-up trucks more and more in European cities nowadays too, F-150s, Dodge Rams, with some fancy paintjob and big wheels but who's bed hasn't seen any actual use carrying anything because the owner is usually some middle-aged Ray-Ban wearing divorced dad with money, using it as a toy, trying to look cool. Power to him I guess, but those monster trucks are horrible for visibility and safety of cyclists, pedestrians, small cars, etc.
Most utilitarians here, blue collar workers, people for whom their vehicles are a tool for the job, mostly drive white vans here, as they're a lot more practical and economical than big trucks.
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#54New minitrucks should be legal here! If you don't need a huge truck, you should be able to buy something smaller.
You do see new minitrucks in certain non-road settings in the US, but yeah, they aren't street legal. Some folks import them for use as UTVs: https://usminitrucksales.com It's the same somewhat bizarre logic that makes it fine to register say, a 1969 VW Beetle in the US, but not a 2004 Mexican Beetle that's no less clean or safe. The older stuff gets grandfathered in because at that age there's hardly anyone willing…
Owner of a 69 Beetle here, and similarly frustrating that I can't buy and bring home a Suzuki Jimny across the nearby border with Mexico
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
Hi, I live in the boonies, and own one of these minitrucks. a) They do 60mph ok if you have a four-speed one. Five-speed ones will do 70 just fine. b) country roads are generally 45 in most states. c) chinese minitrucks have a hell of a lot less support for about the same price. d) Ford mavericks are DOA here. If you want a work van you buy a work van.
is the Maverick DOA? I see the all over my rural farm area and people are paying $8000 over sticker for the privilege of getting one of the few in stock.
Not at all. They sold 70k Mavericks last year and have 80k MY23s on pre-order. For context, the Maverick outsold the Ranger by nearly 50%. The main issue at the moment is they can't make them fast enough.
I put in a pre-order for a hybrid 6 months ago and have probably another 6 months to wait.
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#56Yeah these things are awesome. Exactly what I need on my land. I hope to get one someday.
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
is the Maverick DOA? I see the all over my rural farm area and people are paying $8000 over sticker for the privilege of getting one of the few in stock.
Must be somewhere in the flatlands then. The small(er) truck market is dominated by Toyota, Nissan and Chevrolets and Ford Rangers. Mavericks are mostly city-dweller mom-mobiles at best.
Louisiana swamps. They don't want to buy many SantaCruz's or Ridgelines, but as soon as you show them a Ford Maverick they are game.
Mostly driven by people who white-flighted out of the city and need something to pick up chicken feed and mulch.
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#58The local Mahindra dealer also seems to be doing a brisk business with their Roxors - they're almost literally a 1950s Jeep with a modern diesel engine in them. It's the same market niche - small, off highway use, utility vehicles. And at least out here, you're allowed to run around on the roads at least some with them to get between fields.
I presume you're not in USA - I can't imagine being allowed to import the Mahindra copy-paste Jeep into USA. Those clones are so blatant... Wish they added some more Indian flair to them. I can't believe jeep still bothered to enter the Indian market with that on the roads!
Jeep's design is close to a century old at this point. Why should it still be legally protected?
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#59One of the most highly upvoted Reddit posts on /r/fuckcars mocks large pickups compared to the utility of a kei truck. https://reddit.com/r/fuckcars/comments/sdrgv3/japanese_truck... A kei truck has about 90% the bed length of a pickup while being a lot more nimble. The lower bed is more ergonomic to load and unload too.
Where I live the hills would stall that kei out before you got to any real hills, with nothing at all added to the bed.
Re: Rural Americans are importing tiny Japanese pickup trucks
#60I've seriously contemplated getting one of these. Street legal, fuel efficient, simple, but when I started researching them I started to see a pattern. It's hard to find anyone in rural areas willing to work on them and not all mini trucks are equal. Some are not shipped correctly and have frame rust issues. There are YouTuber's that cover some of the models and the gotchas and things to inspect. I would never buy on…
I’d recommend looking for a reputable dealer who does a proper shipment and inspection. Here in Seattle we have https://sodo-moto.com who works with fvej.com to bring vehicles over and ensure the quality.